This invention relates generally to air conditioning systems and, more particularly, to a condenser fan orifice design for a room air conditioner.
Conventional room air conditioners include outdoor and indoor sections, with the outdoor section including a condenser coil and a fan for blowing outside air over the condenser coil, while the indoor section includes an evaporator coil and a fan for blowing indoor air over the evaporator coil.
The outdoor portion typically has the condenser coil located at the outer end of the unit, with the fan being positioned adjacent thereto for directing outdoor air outwardly through the condenser coil. That space between the fan and the condenser coil is then referred to as the high pressure side of the fan and the other side is referred to as the low pressure side wherein outdoor air is drawn in through the side walls by the fan. Inasmuch as the air conditioning unit is normally rectangular rather than round in shape, the boundary between the high and low pressure sides is defined, in addition to the fan, by a so-called "condenser fan orifice wall" which extends radially inwardly from the unit housing to closely surround the condenser fan. In addition, to reduce recirculation, or tip losses, it has become customary to provide, at an axial extension of the fan orifice wall, a cylindrical fan orifice ring which closely surrounds the fan to prevent the migration of air from the high pressure to the low pressure side of the fan. This is commonly done by mechanically attaching the fan orifice ring to the fan orifice wall by welding or the like.
Traditionally, the housing structure for room air conditioning systems has been fabricated from metal material.
Accordingly, it was a relatively simple matter to weld in a fan orifice wall and associated fan orifice ring. Recently, however, use has been made of synthetic materials such as polymerics for the housing structure. With such materials, the orifice can be separately molded and then attached to the housing or the orifice wall by fasteners or the like.
A particular housing design utilizing molded materials is that shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 778,113 filed concurrently herewith and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. In that design, the fan orifice wall is molded as an integral part of the housing. Whereas it would be desirable to also mold the fan orifice ring as an integral part thereof, it is not possible to do so because of the axial orientation of the conventional fan orifice ring. An alternative is to attach a separate fan orifice ring element to the fan orifice wall by conventional fastening means such as screws or the like. However, there is a possibility that the ring may come loose to cause noise, or worse, to cause damage to the fan, fan motor or compressor. Further, to make such an attachment is time consuming and costly during the assembly process.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved fan orifice ring structure for an air conditioning housing made from synthetic materials.
Another object of the present invention is the provision for a fan orifice ring structure to be used in combination with an orifice wall made from a synthetic material.
Still another object of the present invention is the provision in an air conditioning unit having a fan orifice wall formed of a synthetic material, for a fan orifice ring which is not susceptible to movement within the housing.
Yet another object of the present invention is the provision for an air conditioner housing with an integral fan orifice wall and fan orifice ring which is economical to manufacture and efficient to use.
These objects and other features and advantages become more readily apparent upon reference to the following description when taken in conjunction with the appended drawings.